Upon a Star: Karyana's Journey: Chapter 10

Laurinya's rebellion leads to harsh consequences, while Demyan meets with his past to prevent a tragic future.

Chapter 10

Laurinya looked around at her dream-scape, seeing the familiar grassy fields and the lone apple tree. Only, the breeze felt cold, and the tree's leaves were rust-colored. Even the grass felt dry as she strode through it.

"Kaina, I know you're here!" she shouted in an aggravated tone. "Show yourself!"

The brunette sister rose from behind the orchard and walked slowly towards her 'twin' sister. Next to her was a young man, dressed in an elaborate set of robes, wearing a mask that covered from the tip of his nose to the top of his brow. While his stride was confident, Kaina's was hesitant, even though she wore a suit of armor made of hardened leather, covering a set of steel ring mail.

"You don't have to shout at her." Demyan spoke, his gaze turning slightly towards the short-haired brunette. "She did not summon you here. I did."

Laurinya's emerald eyes furrowed as her brow straightened into a frown. "You better explain yourself, Demyan. I don't want to stay here any longer than I have to."

Kaina meekly looked at her sister. "L-Laurinya… just listen." she said, her voice trembling.

Laurinya's frown turned into a scowl. "As if I have anything to say to you!" she shouted, causing the meeker sister to double back, scared of what the golden-haired young woman could do.

Demyan placed a hand against Laurinya's shoulder and gazed into her eyes. "Then I will speak, and you will listen, for this is a matter of life or death… for all of us!" he spoke with such authority that it was the girl's turn to be nervous.

Kaina nervously walked towards the tree and sat down near its roots. The fact that Chime was not there made her even more worried. Ever since she had been selected by the young lord as his champion, her tasks had made her increasingly uneasy. He had tested her over and over on her skill with the blade, and found that, even if she did not have any skill for manaweave, she could remember events and spells with utmost precision. The only thing that made the young lord weary was her lack of self-confidence and her constant need for someone to direct her to a task or another.

Laurinya kept a few paces from her sister's position, even as she sat down. "Make this quick. As soon as the dawn rises, I'll be making my way to Shardfall."

"Starfall?" Kaina asked, somewhat confused. "W-what is that?"

Demyan sat at equal distance between both sisters, looked at the two of them, then spoke, answering the meek fighter's. "Shardfall is a place where the manaweave of Lady Asuna, the Planar-Goddess of the Moon and the Stars, first made contact with Medierth. Legends speak of it as the place where Reveen, the Planar-God of all magic, first met her."

Laurinya shook her head. "Legends and stories do not interested me." she replied, her tone as hard as the ring mail Kaina wore. "Vokram's notes spoke that if a person of great manaweaving abilities can find the shards of the First Star and place them around the crater where the White Lady landed, that person could tap into the powers of the Planar-Goddess herself and make her grant your deepest wish."

Kaina brought her hands to her sides and looked at her sister. "Your deepest wish?" she asked, not so much as to clarify what it meant as it was to ask what her sister truly wished for.

Laurinya let out a sigh before turning away from both of them. "For all my life �" the life I lived -, I've been used by others. Vokram used me, the Order used me… it's about time I live my own life! I'm sick of being told what to do, who to see and where to go! I want my freedom!" she spoke, the last sentences coming out as a crescendo of shouts.

Kaina wanted to get up, but Demyan shook his head, as he stood up. "Are you done with your self-centered ramblings?" he asked in the same orderly tone with which he stopped her from leaving. "Do you even know who you really are?"

"I know exactly who I am!" Laurinya shouted, looking defiantly at the young lord. "I am Laurinya Val'Kyr, daughter of Ailyn Val'kyr and Eredric Destine, former slave and executioner of Vokram Niros, and I will no longer listen to any word you say to me!"

Demyan's eyes closed, though anger was apparent on his face. "You will suffer me, child!" he replied, though his voice was not his own. It seemed deeper, more commanding, causing both girls to be paralyzed in fear. The very dreamscape seemed to shift at his words, as the wind grew stronger, causing the grass to flay about. "I speak on behalf of the Magelord Reveen, and I will not tolerate you defile the manaweave of the Alabaster Lady for your own selfish needs!"

Laurinya felt as if the wind was flaying at her, causing her lungs to empty and her knees to buckle. Bringing a hand to her chest, she gasped for air just as the winds calmed down.

"Lauri… for once, be reasonable…" Kaina pleaded, taking a step towards her sister.

The golden-haired sister managed to catch her breath and pointed her free hand at Laurinya, her index and forefinger held straight. "I won't let… anyone… tell me what to do!" she shouted, a blast of energy discharging from her fingers, slamming against her sister's chest.

The bolt of energy had enough force to knock the young fighter off her feet and to propel her against the tree. The look of shock on her face vanished only as her body fell limp against the rough bark.

Demyan quickly placed his left hand against Laurinya's forehead, clutching on to a lock of hair while his palm pressed against her skull. "I did not want to do this, but you leave me no choice." he said, his voice as threatening as an executioner's axe. "On the day you cast your wishes at Shardfall, your fate will torn from you! I brand you with the weave of your sister, so you will never escape her!"

Laurinya felt the young man's hand press against her forehead like a white-hot arrow tip. She could only cringe in pain as the four-pointed diamond mark appeared on her forehead �" a perfect match to the scar Kaina had on her forehead, left behind by the monstrous contraption that made them who they were now.

Demyan threw his hand away, causing Laurinya to fall on her side, the mark still burning on her forehead. "Until you discard your selfishness and embrace your role in the Great Weave, there will no release from this brand."

Laurinya got up, anger burning in her eyes. "Then pray we never meet again…" she said before walking away, her dream-form vanishing.

The young lord looked back at Kaina. "I'm sorry it had to come down to this…" he said as he walked over to her unconscious form. "But I promise this…"

Placing his right hand delicately on her forehead, he closed his eyes anew. "On the day of Laurinya's fall from grace, you will be the one to catch her… and it will be you who will piece Karyana's mind back together."

Removing his hand, he noticed the scar on her forehead vanish. Pushing a lock of hair from her face, he let out a sigh and continued. "I can tell you have a kind nature and a grand heart. Soon, you two will be together, and together, you will be one. For now, rest..."

Kaina's form slowly dissipated from the dream plane, leaving Demyan alone. "Planar Lords, what have I done?" he uttered, sitting down under the branches of the tree, whose leaves were starting to fall from the autumn chill.

"You only did what you thought was right." came the voice of an old man.

As Demyan looked up, he noticed a tall man in the winter of his time, wearing battlemage's robes, holding himself up with a gnarled staff. The old man's beard was white and long, tied at his belt.

"Master Scyens… wait. You don't look like him." the young man commented as he examined him from head to foot. "Who are you? And what do you want?"

"I am Lord Medai, the previous human incarnation of Reveen." the old man spoke in a gentle tone, even though his age made him sound a bit gruff. "And on this night, through your actions, you have awakened to the heritage you were born with."

Demyan shook his head. "I don't understand. All I did was become angry, and I even cursed that girl…" he spoke as the old man took the time to sit down, leaving his staff between him and the young man.

Medai looked down at the young lord's hands. "What you did was alter both of their fates. Though Panyus may not approve, you have intricately woven these two girls back together."

The young man looked back at his hands, then clinched both into fists. "I didn't want any of this to happen…" he added, cringing and turning his head away from the old man's grey eyes.

"Your fate, unfortunately, was decided the moment you were born, as is those of all mortal and immortal races of Medierth." the old Magelord commented. "It was your fate to be born in a humble family, as to avoid the traps and snares that come with a life of power and greed. It was also your fate to meet these two young ones in your dream… though you have probably forgotten, but they were once a distant friend of yours."

Demyan thought for a moment. "A distant friend?" he asked.

"It was her fate to suffer this ordeal �" to become two where once was one." the old man added. "You remember, yes?"

It took the young boy moments before a fleeting memory of his past snapped back in his mind. A young girl with hair blacker than the night and eyes as blue as the day sky, yet sparkling like crystal. A melodious voice, brimming with happiness, as she played with him and a tiny creature, no bigger than a house cat, with tiny horns and bat wings…

"Chime…" he spoke, then her name sprung from his mind to his lips. "Karyana!" he almost shouted, his eyes opening wide. "How could I forget her…"

The long-bearded man looked at the younger man. "You see… your fate and hers are linked together by more than the will of the Planars. You two have been blessed by the Childlord himself. Your destiny was woven with great peril, but it will also usher a new age for Medierth."

Demyan brought his hand to his forehead. "But what if they never meet? What if either of them dies? If the Planars wanted me and her to be together, then why have us wait?"

The old man pulled out a small mirror from the sash that hung loosely on his battle garments. "Then look closely, and ask what the future will hold, should the grand design fail…"

Demyan looked into the mirror. The obsidian surface soon came to life, as image after image came and went, showing Citadel in ruins, its population dead or dying, in agony and despair, as legions of skeletal armies raged forth, led by an obsidian-skinned giant, taller than the Citadel's highest tower. The moon's pale light snuffed as darkness devoured the remnants of the city, spreading through the lands like ebony wildfire.

Each vision shook Demyan to the core until he could no longer look into the mirror, which fell from his hands. "This… this is a nightmare…" he spoke, bringing a shaking hand to his forehead.

"A nightmare that would be all too real, I'm afraid." Medai said. "The girl you call Karyana was born of Reveen's wish for a maiden to betroth, but Xelnos' meddling cast him to the mortal world and left Lady Asuna, his first love, weeping in the night sky. It seems that, after so many mortal lives spent alone, Reveen was granted his wish by Progeny himself."

"But why these visions?" the young man asked. "Why do these hellish images mean?"

"It means that Karyana's role is not merely to become Reveen's betrothed, but to bring the downfall of Planar-Demon." Medai spoke, getting up slowly while leaving his staff on the ground. "But to this end, she will need your help. Now, her mind is asunder, divided into the two sisters you know as Laurinya and Kaina. It will be your task to see her safely to you…"

Demyan picked up the staff and got up. "Wait… will I see you again?" he asked, handing the old man his walking stick.

"I'm afraid this is as much time as I was allowed." the old man replied. "Give that staff to that wild child. I will have more gifts for her before she reaches Shardfall. But know this: you are Reveen's manifestation on Medierth now. Your life will be watched by the Planars…"

Before Demyan could tell Medai to wait, the form of the old man vanished, leaving the young man alone, gripping the gnarled ebony staff with both hands.

----

A whole month had past since the end of the siege. Already, scribes and bards had written tales of how a handful of adventurers, led by the ranger Alban Ma Leon, had broken through the undead army led by Xamaris the Defiler and saved the Jeweled City from a fate worse than death.

For Alban, it was more than this. Though the battle had been victorious, and the celebrations grander than anything he had ever seen in his life, the now-adult was granted the one thing his heart desired ever since he first gazed upon it: the great-sword that he had seen in his youth. The very weapon he heard tales from around the campfire from Onyx… a sword said to be blessed by the Planar of Justice himself, able to bring demons to their knees.

Although the lord of Xenethil Keep had been generous as to offer the greatest of gifts his armory possessed, it seemed that Alban's comrades were less interested in them. For Baratus, his choice was less a matter of weapons as it was a choice of pride. He almost refused any and all gifts proposed, except for a set of armor made in the hides of a silver-back mountain cat. As Baratus said himself, "the hides of the greatest mountain hunter make for the greatest warrior."

Onyx seemed to also take interest in some of the armory's reliquaries, but ended up collecting a magical bag, enchanted to hold any and all weight, which was rather practical, as the crafty dwarf had collected so much gear that he had little place to store it.

Through their ordeal, Yu Shaia had grown ever closer to Meilin and, rather than relics or gems, they were given property of a small manor on the outskirts of the Keep, a day's walk from the Emerald Sea. Though Alban was saddened to see two of his closest friends and comrades leave the roads of the adventurer, he was impressed when, only a week after the two of them had moved in to the manor, they announced their engagement.

As Alban sat at a table in the tavern of the keep, looking in his empty pint, his mind wondered. "My first real quest…" he spoke to himself. "It was nice while it lasted, but I can't just stop now. Out there, thousands of other adventures await. Who know where our next adventure will lead us…"

"I can help you with that." said a woman's voice.

Looking up, he noticed a young woman, at least a few years younger than he was with golden hair, emerald eyes and a fair complexion, sit down at his table. Leaving her gnarled staff balanced against her chair, she looked at him with a broad smile.

"Who're you?" the ranger asked, examining the lass as she pulled a scroll from her satchel. "You look rather young for a client."

"I don't want to hire you as mercenaries." she replied. "I'd like you and your comrades to help me find Starfall."

Alban scratched his chin with his index as he grabbed the scroll and examined its contents. "A map… Heading north through… the Blasted Mountains? Do you even know what lies there?"

Laurinya smile turned into an almost devilish grin. "I do. And that's why I require your assistance."

Author's Note

Any comment, critiques and reviews will be welcome. I really want to know if my story is good enough to be published.